“Yes, you can, I know that. I just love you, that’s all. I’d kill myself if something happened to you because you followed me.”
“We’ll be fine, Grady.” Her voice sounded like she believed that, but her face said otherwise.
“I hope so. I really do.”
I’ve been wrong about a great many things in my almost three decades. I’ll admit that. Men are usually wrong, according to Mia, and it was certainly true in my case.
But being wrong all the time didn’t always mean bad things. Because I was wrong about our trip with the Scavs. Their numbers thinned after the attack so Ell and I had very big shoes to fill. And believe me, we tried our best.
There were five in total. George, Zoe, Chad, and Ell and myself. I knew Zoe pretty well, but had only ever spoken to Chad on a few occasions. He was close to my age, maybe a little older. He seemed a bit cocky, the way guys in their late teens and early twenties usually are. You could tell by how often he mentioned how much he could bench press.
We took the snow-tank George had retrieved Credence in. The cab’s console looked like the cockpit of a Boeing 757 with all its buttons, switches, and gadgets. We all fit inside comfortably, and on a Monday morning, with the snow falling hard and the wind blowing harder, we set out east to another settlement.
What I was wrong about was thinking things would go badly for us. They did not. The trip actually went smoothly. We saw no signs of wraiths. No signs of crazy people. Still, I kept both my weapon and my flashlight within reach.
The settlement was located on a defunct military base, where a few people lived below ground in a bunker. When we pulled up to it, all I saw out the windshield was rolling mounds of white.
George stopped and killed the engine. “Home away from home sweet home,” he grunted.
Ell and I exchanged a look just as Zoe pulled the radio mic from the dash and spoke into it.
“The hippo has entered the pond. I repeat, the hippo has entered the pond. And it’s bath time.”
Static crackled, and an old man said, “Affirmative.”
Lights blinked on all around us. I turned away from them and squinted against the brightness. Now able to see better, I noticed a dip in the snow’s surface to my left. The wind groaned, rocking our vehicle back and forth, but the grinding sound of the opening bunker door drowned it out.
“All right, let’s move out,” George said.
The walk to the opening was about thirty feet, and in that thirty feet I felt my joints turn to ice.
Once in, a man with a long gray beard greeted us. He looked like a mixture of Gandalf and Dumbledore—very wizard-y. George and him hugged one another like they were old friends, and then the bearded man hugged Zoe and Chad the same way.
Ell and I waited politely before George nodded his head toward us and said, “This here is Grady and Ell. They’re helping out.”
The wizard-man frowned; there was a touch of sadness in his eyes. “Oh, Nicky told me. How terrible. I’m so sorry to hear about your losses. I loved Ayden like a brother.” He turned, smiled, and initiated a group hug. A strong scent of tobacco swept over me. Homegrown stuff.
“My name is Julius, and it’s so nice to meet you both.”
“Nice to meet you too,” I said.
“Come in, everyone, and warm up.” Julius led us down a metal staircase, which was lit by weak bulbs every fifteen or so feet. Our boots clanged off the steps and echoed around our heads. It seemed like we'd traveled a mile below before a brighter light emerged and the sounds of conversation drifted upward.
“No, no, no, man! You cheated!”
“I didn’t cheat! You just suck donkey dick at—”
Julius cleared his throat, interrupting the argument. “Fellas, we have guests. Please mind your manners.”
Two men were sitting at a card table. A game of backgammon sat between them. Judging by the way their fists were balled up, I didn’t think they’d be sitting much longer. The bunker was spacious, but I could already feel the walls closing in. I was surprised these guys hadn’t killed each other already. They were both middle-aged. One was balding; the other had a full head of hair that went down past his shoulders and a hard face, like a rock star having trouble adapting to mid-life.
“Mind if I use the bathroom?” Zoe asked. “My bladder’s about to burst.”
“Of course,” Julius answered. He waved a hand behind him.
“Oh, here, I’ll show you,” the retired rock star said.
“Give it a rest, Damian. I’m not gonna bang you,” Zoe replied. The man chuckled awkwardly, his eyes flicking to Ell and I, and then to the floor. Zoe passed him without so much as a glance and went down the nearby corridor Julius had pointed to.
“Yo, Chad, you wanna get in on this? I can’t play with Dame no more. He’s a cheatin’ son of a bitch,” the balding man said. Damian flashed his middle finger, and the other guy flashed it right back.
Julius glared their way. “What did I say about minding your manners, you two? I expect that kind of behavior from Damian, but not you, Sam. For God’s sake, there’s a lady present.” His head turned slightly in Ell’s direction.
“I don’t mind,” Ell said, surprised. “I hear enough of it from this guy.” She cocked a thumb at me, and I smiled innocently.
“See, Julius? You gotta lighten up, my friend,” the balding man, Sam, said. “Now how about it, Chad?”
Chad shook his head. “Nah, man. I just wanna sleep on an actual mattress. Being cooped up in the boat’s got me cramped as hell.”
“Chicken,” Sam said, to which Chad rolled his eyes and left down a different corridor.
I stepped forward. “I’m game. Been a while
